Dan's Papers October 21, 2011 by Dan's Papers

Kabot

Dan’s Papers October 21, 2011 danshamptons.com Page 26 (continued from page 23)

Unfortunately, hubris and arrogance kicks in for a lot of public office-holders. That’s why it is necessary to have serious challengers, not just critics—but people willing to offer an alternative to the voters. “Another huge mistake is failing to give credit to all the efforts I undertook to right the ship in Southampton Town, working with key Town administrators throughout 2008 and 2009. Instead, a revisionist history has been woven and manipulated for political posturing purposes. The facts do not lie. I stood up in 2007 to take responsibility and put an end to what I publicly called ‘political budgeting’ and ‘Enron Accounting.’” Kabot continued by saying, “I ran a primary against the then-Supervisor and went on to win the General Election. As

Supervisor and Chief Fiscal Officer, I raised the red flags about the sagging economy, cut millions from the town budget, and worked tirelessly for the taxpayers. I brought the past problems to light and led the corrective actions to address the sloppy bookkeeping errors, eliminate deficits, and present structurallybalanced budgets. I provided the strong leadership necessary to safeguard our town credit rating, cut government spending, and enable the town to have a brighter future. My opponent did not do the heavy-lifting—the record reflects that I did. She did vote in favor of those balanced budgets and corrective tax levies I proposed, while obstructing other costcutting initiatives I made. Months later, she has now dusted them off to call them her own for

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Councilwoman I began scrutinizing then current practices and accounting history, and six weeks into that term I called for the first forensic audit. We have completed 11 in the time since, and importantly, addressed and corrected a majority of the findings. Further, the standard I have set for transparency and public inclusion in the legislative process, is both entirely new to the Town of Southampton. And knowing how hard old habits are to change, unless I have the opportunity to keep these new practices going and stay vigilant over the process of revisiting past policies and procedures, I believe much of the work accomplished over the last couple of years will be for naught. For example, new Planned Development District legislation and process, multiple environmental and sustainability efforts, working with government on all levels through spearheading the Regional Clean Water Coalition, taxpayer supportive Union contracts, extensive reorganization and efficiency efforts to reduce costs and improve

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the 2012 Budget.” She went on in detail about the town credit rating problem and concluded by saying, “This has really been a ‘Do-Nothing Administration,’” Kabot added, “Which is unfortunate because the people who supported her thought there would be a positive change. There is so much political bickering going on at this point, as she constantly blames what she calls ‘the majority’ for not supporting some of her proposals. There are numerous instances of untruths and misrepresentation of the facts, so the current Supervisor’s words often cannot be trusted, in my opinion—which is an opinion shared by many, many others.” When asked who she is supporting for the Southampton Board Kabot replied, “I have encouraged voters to choose Bill Hughes and Christine Scalera, for their credentials and commitment to the ideals of good government. Both of these candidates are fiscally-conservative and are well familiarized with the matters that mean the most to residents and taxpayers, such as bolstering our local economy, keeping taxes low, land preservation, and proactive code enforcement to protect our quality of life. I pledge to work cooperatively with whomever the voters select as their representative. After Election Day, it is incumbent upon public officials to work together on the people’s business to the best of their ability. For all the members of the Town Board, it really should be about serving the people, not politics or oneupmanship. I have earned respect from voters across the political spectrum for my approach to governing in a non-partisan manner.” When asked why it was important that she win the 2011 election for Southampton Supervisor, Kabot said, “The future of Southampton Town is at a crossroads. With the struggling economy, 2% state-mandated tax cap, increasing nondiscretionary costs such as unfunded benefit liabilities, we need better representation and more effective leadership at the helm. Bring back a knowledgeable Supervisor who proven time and time again that actions speak louder than words.”

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